Podcast · News

Hotel Pacifico

by Air Quotes Media · English · News

Welcome to Hotel Pacifico. We’re your 5-star podcast destination for B.C. politicos. Hosted by Mike McDonald and Kate Hammer. With Geoff Meggs. #BCpoli #StrategySuite #MiniBar Hotel Pacifico is recorded on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Wautu

New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 1 hr 9 min
Latest: 13 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

13 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 13 minNew

Post-Turkey, Pre-Debate

Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and the National Police Federation. Mike & Geoff surface from their respective Thanksgiving food comas to dish out the latest on the BC election and local government elections. The duo review the emerging news that Premier Eby was a recipient of $10/day daycare and also dissect controversial comments made by the Conservative campaign manager. Healthcare, wealth taxes, ...

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

9 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 11 min
Tax Me If You Can
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and CUPE BC. Mike & Geoff release exclusive Pollara Strategic Insights topline results on the BC election. Heading into Turkey Time, Geoff argues the NDP had a great week on campaign trail keeping the Conservatives on the defensive, while Mike wonders what the voters think about it. With two weeks to go in the campaign, the duo debates the tax plans of the two ma...
7 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
Peace Out
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and the National Police Federation. Geoff and Mike review the final candidate standings and remark up on the Green surge in the final 48 hours, bringing their ranks up to 73 candidates and a chair in the TV debate. The NDP, however, peaced out by failing to register a candidate in Peace River North, which means Mike owes Geoff a hot dog (but what kind of hot dog?) Also on the me...
3 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
Oiled Up
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and CUPE BC. Geoff finds himself in Victoria and Mike finds himself in Calgary as they review the week that was on the campaign trail. Gas tax and groceries promises and reaction to the oil pipeline announcement are on the menu. Mike and Geoff burrow into the candidate lists and wonder if the minor parties are going to show up to the ballot by the October 3rd deadline. The duo r...
30 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
Over-Stimulated
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and the National Police Federation. Mike and Geoff frantically attempt to dissect news from the campaign trail, the LNG Canada final investment decision, and the fast forming candidate slates. On the local scene, they discuss the state of the race in Vancouver then head to the northwest to look at issues in Prince Rupert, Terrace, and Kitimat. 🏨🌄 Check into Hotel Pacifico f...
27 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 9 min
Give Me A (Fire) Break
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from FortisBC, National Police Federation, and CUPE BC. Mike and Geoff discuss the early days of the BC election including the NDP’s uneven launch, 🔥 fighting Lorne Doerkson, and the opportunities for leaders Elenore Sturko and Emily Lowan. The duo review some of the new candidates and poll results then move on to local election dynamics in Vancouver, Surrey and Richmond. 🏨🌄 Check into Hotel Pacifico for insights and inte...
23 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 5 min
Snap, Crackle and Pop
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Snap! Mike & Geoff navigate through the crackling changes in the BC political landscape that took place in the preceding 72 hours: the migration of MLAs to CentreBC, the resignation of KLF, the rise of Lorne Doerkson as BC Conservative leader, the return of (most) CentreBC MLAs to the Conservative caucus, and the ultimate call of the election for October 24th. Mike &am...
19 Sep 2026 · 54 min
Snap Emergency Pod
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from FortisBC, National Police Federation, and CUPE BC. Mike & Geoff attempt to recap the fast-moving events that appear to signal a snap BC election to be called within days. They discuss the political calculation, the Conservative Chaos (to the power of 10), Premier Eby’s speech to the UBCM and what he promised, and the impact a snap election will have on BC’s 161 municipalities and 27 regional districts that go to ...
16 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
"Pinot Nope" with Mike de Jong
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike and Geoff welcome former BC Attorney-General and Finance Minister Mike de Jong for another visit to Hotel Pacifico. De Jong tackles this week’s Quarterly Report that shows rising red ink and explains why he signed a letter, along with 10 other BC Attorneys-General in support of the Treaty process. The talk inevitably leads to the Conservatives and where things a...
12 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 7 min
SPECIAL SERIES: "Local Combat" with McDonald, Meggs and Zussman
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from FortisBC, National Police Federation, and CUPE BC. Hotel Pacifico’s Local Combat. Episode 1 of 5. Mike, Geoff, and longtime friend of the pod Richard Zussman break down the races to watch in BC’s local communities. On October 17th, British Columbians will elect mayors, councillors, and area directors for new four-year terms. Episode segments include: Top of the Ballot – the biggest local elections story of the ...
9 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 24 min
"Chief Concern" with Fiona Wilson
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome the City of Victoria’s Chief Constable Fiona Wilson to discuss policing the streets, the need for treatment, and the experience with decriminalizing drugs. In the Strategy Suite, Geoff and Mike reveal a new short pod series on local elections starting soon. They also discuss accounting for natural gas, the impact and legacy of Joan Phillip, and ongoing C...
1 Sep 2026 · 56 min
Triple ChaOs
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Fresh off their recent Emergency Pod, Geoff and Mike review the latest on which MLAs have exited the KLF train. As of the time of the recording (August 31st), seven MLAs have left the BC Conservative caucus in the past few weeks, with more expected to leave in September. Geoff and Mike review the backroom meetings taking place at White Spot and other undisclosed locations,...
28 Aug 2026 · 55 min
Emergency Pod: Conservative Chaos
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike & Geoff rush to their screens to record an Emergency Podcast on the BC Conservative chaos unfolding this week: 5 MLAs leaving caucus, a bumpy byelection announcement, leaked audio and a senior staff firing, and a 'Triple O Summit' of political operatives seeking to find their way forward. Add to that political meal - a side of DRIPA for good measure. 🏨🌄 Chec...
27 Aug 2026 · 54 min
"Mission Critical" with Andrew Percy
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Former UK Conservative MP and newly minted Vancouver resident Andrew Percy returns to Hotel Pacifico. Mike, Geoff and Andrew discuss the 🇨🇦 🇺🇸 trade dispute with Andrew bringing a UK / Euro perspective and relating the Brexit debate to the current trade war. Andrew also notes the parallels between BC Conservative turmoil and friction in other Conservative coalitions. 🏨🌄 Ch...
19 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 20 min
"The Middle Man" with Peter Milobar
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Newly independent, Kamloops-Centre MLA Peter Milobar joins Geoff and Mike to discuss his decision to leave the BC Conservative caucus. Milobar discusses his decision, the tumultuous path he’s travelled since 2017 when he was first elected - having served under 8 leaders - and what’s next. A new party? More MLAs to follow? Mike and Geoff breeze through other to...
13 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 30 min
"By the Book" with Howard White
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome Howard White, owner of Harbour Publishing, BC’s most prolific publisher. White discusses the appetite of British Columbians for regional stories and the array of titles Harbour has published over the years. Geoff raises the question about which BC political books are yet to be written (Mike?). In the Strategy Suite, Geoff and Mike are swamped...
5 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
"Cold industry, hot forests" with Kim Haakstad
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike and Geoff welcome Kim Haakstad, CEO of the Council of Forest Industries, to discuss the struggling forest industry, the top 3 actions that would bring relief, and the impact of fire season. In the Strategy Suite, the hosts discuss a clipping of the week on ranching, the state of the BC Conservatives, dissent within David Eby’s cabinet on LNG, and Mark Carney’s BC blit...
30 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 4 min
“BC Unpacked” with Terry Glavin
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike & Geoff welcome the inimitable Terry Glavin for a BC Day interview. Terry is a National Post writer, author of ‘The Real Story’ substack, and an award-winning author with a lifetime of accomplishment. His early books - A Death Feast in Dimlahamid and Nemiah: the Unconquered Country - addressed Indigenous land rights issues. He has written about t...
23 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 7 min
"The Smell of Money" with Thomas Seal, Bloomberg’s Vancouver Bureau Chief
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome Thomas Seal, Bloomberg’s Vancouver bureau chief, to Hotel Pacifico. Thomas discusses the stories he’s been covering on the west coast and what’s gaining the attention of Bloomberg readers, including industries on the rise and industries under stress. They also discuss parallels between Brexit and the Alberta separatism debate, the joy of seapla...
15 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 5 min
"Proof is in the pudding" with Jarryd Jäger + Leah Holoiday and Carling Dick
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike is home alone at the Hotel this week and has hired temps to come in to keep the discussing going. He’s joined by Sitka Media’s Jarryd Jäger, formerly of the Western Standard. Jäger discusses the vision for the fledgling news service and where it fits between the echo chambers. The Maple Ridge product also discusses his advocacy for free speech and how gene...
9 Jul 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
“All In” with Emily Lowan, Leader of the BC Green Party
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome BC Green Party leader Emily Lowan to Hotel Pacifico. The trio sustain a busy discussion touching on Oligarchs!, her critique of the Eby government, her admiration for Avi Lewis, her support of DRIPA, her poker face when Geoff and Mike put forward their guesses which seat she will contest in the next general election - if a byelection doesn’t ha...
1 Jul 2026 · 53 min
"Policy Dead Man Walking" with Dimitri Pantazopoulos + Kate returns!
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. A jam packed agenda on the pod this week for an extended Strategy Suite. Joining Geoff back at Hotel Pacifico is Dimitri Pantazopoulos! Dimitri is a politico vet and widely-respected Conservative organizer and pollster whose most recent project was the BC Conservative leadership campaign of Iain Black. Plus ... Kate Hammer returns to give us a reality check on the policy files w...
25 Jun 2026 · 56 min
"8 is Enough" (including the Carney Condo bailout)
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Mike and Geoff are home alone this week and convene a full-length Strategy Suite covering eight (8!) topics including: Fire in the Canyon, the Carney Condo bailout, Eby's trip to China, the Massey 'Deas'-aster, Vancouver's World Cup branding win, Red Chris and what it means for DRIPA, nurses on the march, and what's KLF up to? 🏨🌄 Check into Hotel Pacifico for insights and interv...
18 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 18 min
"Labouring over Economics" with Jim Stanford
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome economist Jim Stanford, director of the Centre for Future Work, a think tank in Vancouver. For twenty years, Jim was chief economist and policy director for Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, as well as a research associate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Jim, Geoff, and Mike tour through the turbulent economic landscape...
14 Jun 2026 · 43 min
RACE TO REPLACE: “Winner's Podium” with Chris Dyson
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from BC Dairy and the Energy Futures Institute. Welcome to our bonus episode of Hotel Pacifico's Race to Replace, a special series focused on the ins and outs of the BC Conservative leadership race, which concluded on May 30. Mike McDonald is joined by the campaign manager for Kerry-Lynne Findlay's winning campaign, Chris Dyson. 🏨🌄 Check into Hotel Pacifico for insights and interviews covering the latest in B.C. politics. Thank you f...
10 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 16 min
"25 and 34" with former B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome the 34th Premier of BC, Gordon Campbell, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his government taking power in 2001. His ’New Era’ government ran the rockpile on Belleville Street for the next 16 years. Campbell reflects on some lessons learned, but not too much, as he weighs in on the politics and issues of today. In the Strategy S...
3 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 10 min
"KLF WTFFF!" with James Moore
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC. Geoff and Mike welcome the Hon. James Moore to dissect the BC Conservative leadership results and the insurgent victory of Kerry-Lynne Findlay. In the Strategy Suite, Geoff and Mike discuss the wrap up of the spring sitting, the latest on an oil pipeline, the latest on BC Hydro firing up gas plants, a PMO to North Van Liberal candidate, and the outlook for David Eby. Final...
29 May 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
"Photo Finish" with Dylan Kruger + Richard Zussman
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and BC Dairy. Mike, Geoff, and Dylan Kruger convene a special joint session of Hotel Pacifico and Race to Replace to preview the BC Conservative leadership results taking place May 30th. Dylan outlines the track conditions, the trio review the major storylines that took place during the course of the campaign, and they discuss the issues that weren’t discussed by the candi...
22 May 2026 · 36 min
RACE TO REPLACE: “Down the Stretch” with Angelo Isidorou
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from BC Dairy and the Energy Futures Institute. Mike McDonald and Dylan Kruger co-host episode seven of Hotel Pacifico's Race to Replace, a special series focused on the ins and outs of the BC Conservative leadership race which concludes on May 30. The hosts discuss track conditions, how the candidates are jockeying for position, the running order of the candidates over the past week (who had a good week, who didn’t), and the h...
21 May 2026 · 1 hr 17 min
"The Rocky Mountain Divide" with Erika Barootes and Shannon Phillips
Hotel Pacifico was created by Air Quotes Media with support from our presenting sponsor TELUS, as well as FortisBC, and Wild First. Geoff and Mike cast their gaze across the mighty Rockies toward guests Erika Barootes (co-host of the Discourse podcast) and Shannon Phillips (former minister in Notley government) who report on the push for an oil pipeline from Alberta to B.C.'s coast and the excitable state of the federation in the Wild Rose province. In Strategy Suite, Geoff and Mike discuss...

About Hotel Pacifico

Hotel Pacifico is a English news podcast from Air Quotes Media. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Air Quotes Media
Language: English
Category: News
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 1 hr 9 min
Latest episode: 13 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1712174560

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